Caterina's Club Serves One Million Meals

Bruno Serato, the award-winning local restaurateur at the Anaheim White House restaurant is doing his part to Feed the Kids in America through his foundation, Caterina’s Club. Inspired by his mother, Caterina Bruno has been a force for good, helping to feed underprivileged children in the Anaheim area and beyond for the past 10 years. Caterina’s Club has now grown beyond Orange County to serve children in several cities throughout the U.S.

Natural Products Expo West Gives Back

Natural Products Expo West partnered with Second Harvest food bank after the March 2015 trade show. More than 83,000 pounds of food donated by vendors produced 69,200 meals to feed local Anaheim and Orange County residents in need. This video is the latest installment of the Faces of Tourism video series - revealing meaningful real-life stories of individuals, families and businesses whose lives, lifestyles and livelihood are personally touched by the success of tourism's billion-dollar business.

NAMM Foundation

Music Matters

The NAMM Foundation held a Day of Service at John Marshall Elementary School in January 2015. Music industry leaders, who were in Anaheim for The NAMM Show at the Anaheim Convention Center, volunteered their time and brought guitars, drums and ukuleles for a morning of music discovery, impromptu music lessons, singing and performing. The NAMM Foundation also donated $10,000 to Anaheim city school’s to strengthen their music programs.

Judy Hamrick

Aramark

Judy Hamrick is a leader with heart. She has been with ARAMARK at the Anaheim Convention Center for more than 25 years, beginning as a server and working her way up to catering captain. She’s seen lots of changes during that time, and knows that some things don’t go out of style – great service, a winning attitude and going the extra mile.

Bruno Duarte

Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen

Bruno knows how to let the good times roll. It’s a bit of Mardi Gras every day at Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen with Bruno, as his charm and enthusiasm extend to all of his interactions with staff, guests and clients. He makes sure that every special event happens seamlessly and with the flair of a Broadway show.

Tom Allday

Anaheim Resort Transportation

Tom Allday is driver-trainer for Anaheim Resort Transportation (ART). He came out of retirement to drive an ART shuttle and ended up loving his job and is now sharing his perspective of the driver’s role in making someone’s vacation unforgettable.

Kevin Kidney

Anaheim community organizer and Disney designer

Kevin and his partner Jody are art designers and storytellers by trade, and have worked with Disneyland on iconic shows and parades. Kevin is involved with the Anaheim Historic Society, owns a historic Anaheim home, and is an active participant in Anaheim’s downtown renaissance and community events.

Rose Gianquinto

The Catch Restaurant, Anaheim

Rose Gianquinto takes her role as the ambassador for the Catch Restaurant in Anaheim with as much heart and genuine affection as one can muster. Gianquinto proudly shares that "the reason guests return year after year is because I remember them and their families," and of course, to get one of her famous hugs.

Steve Valkenburg

Disneyland® Resort

Steve Valkenburg is a quintessential Disneyland® employee with authentic enthusiasm for the tourism industry and a love for people from all walks of life. "I set a goal for myself to create at least one magical, special moment for a guest every single day," he says.

Lynda Santos

Healthy Junk

Lynda Santos puts love into the food that she creates at Healthy Junk in Downtown Anaheim. "I believe food is the connection. It's all about the love."

Greg & Barbara Gerovac

Anaheim Brewery

Greg and Barbara Gerovac of Anaheim Brewery have created a favorite local gathering spot with a welcoming spirit for one and all. As Barbara says, "everyone is in the club and it's always happy hour."

Rashika & Bharat Patel

Anaheim Castle Inn & Suites

The Patels have been in the hospitality industry for three generations, weaving tourism into the very fabric of their family. "Tourism to me is all about the people," says Bharat Patel. "Making their experiences here in Orange County as memorable as possible is what we do."

Faces of Tourism intro video

Discover five engaging tourism stories and the unique people behind them.

Tourism Matters

The tourism industry employs 157,000 people in Orange County

Visitors help boost the local economy, which in turn benefits locals with more restaurants, shopping, entertainment and sports venue options

Tourism Means Business

Visitor spending breakdown:

Lodging $2.3 billion

Meals and Beverages $2.3 billion

Entertainment $2.2 billion

Shopping $1.8 billion

Transportation $0.5 billion

Miscellaneous $0.5 billion

Conventions Create a Ripple Effect

In 2014 the Anaheim area hosted 1.1 million meeting & convention attendees who spent $1.3 Billion dollars in the area.

High profile trade shows such as National Association of Music Merchants(NAMM) and Natural Products Expo West(NPEW) shine a spotlight on our area, contribute to our economy and give back to the local community

Tourism Shows You the Money

Nearly 46.1 million visitors spent $10.7 billion in Anaheim and Orange County in 2014